Bodega BayCA
A town of 1,139, settled in 1941.
Is Bodega Bay a good place to live?
Bodega Bay’s best subject grades are an A− for incomes and health and an A+ for the outdoors; its weakest is a D− for cost of living. Bodega Bay’s typical home value is $1,447,000, above both the California town median ($710,000) and the median of U.S. towns ($332,000). FEMA rates its natural-hazard risk higher than 90% of U.S. communities, with earthquakes at the top. Only 10 of the 848 California towns we compare have a lower share of residents below the poverty line than Bodega Bay. 21% of the land in Bodega Bay is conserved, against 4.3% in California’s towns and 4.3% across U.S. towns. On the outdoors, just 69 of California’s 1,064 towns do better. The biggest park or preserve is Greater Farallones National Marine Sanctuary, at 1,826 acres. Bodega Bay has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade.
What makes Bodega Bay stand out
Where Bodega Bay beats most towns, and one thing worth knowing.
Bodega Bay has shrunk 15% from 2010 to 2020
1,077 counted in 2010 and 912 in 2020.
U.S. Census 2010 & 2020 counts
How Bodega Bay grades
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within California), ordered by how far Bodega Bay is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Fort Ross and 32 more within 40 miles
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Bodega Bay. Close and well known come first.
17 mi Ancient siteFort Ross
6 mi National SeashorePoint Reyes National Seashore2.4M visitors a year
38 mi National MonumentMuir Woods National Monument757K visitors a year
4 mi Ancient siteBodega Bay
37 mi MountainMount Tamalpais
10 mi National Recreation AreaGolden Gate National Recreation Area15.7M visitors a yearPhoto credits
Fort Ross: Frank Schulenburg, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Point Reyes National Seashore: King of Hearts, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Muir Woods National Monument: Unknown, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Bodega Bay: Pixistik1687, Public domain · Mount Tamalpais: Originally uploaded by Nelso (Transferred by DimiTalen), CC BY-SA 3.0 · Golden Gate National Recreation Area: Unknown, CC BY-SA 3.0
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Moving to Bodega Bay: who provides what
Bodega Bay is unincorporated, so Sonoma County and regional agencies provide most services.
EPA SDWIS (Oct 9, 2026) · HIFLD + EIA-861 2025 · Census 2020 ZCTAs · NCES 2024–25 · registration: vote.gov, updated Nov 18, 2024.
The data
Ordered by what stands out in Bodega Bay.
Bodega Bay’s grade for cost of living is a D−
The median rent in Bodega Bay is $1,689 a month. The typical Bodega Bay home is worth about $1,447,000, up 3.7% in a year, 90% above the California typical home.
| Bodega Bay | California towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $1,689 a month | $1,896 a month | $1,185 a month |
| Households that own their home | 73% | 64% | 73% |
Typical home value
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
On state tests, Bodega Bay’s schools beat 68% of California districts
Its public schools are run by the Shoreline Unified school district. Its one school is below.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bodega Bay ElementaryLargest public elementary schoolGrades K–5 | Grades K–5 | 27 | C− |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within CA on state tests and graduation
With 1.8 jobs for every working resident, Bodega Bay draws in 435 commuters
Most working residents leave Bodega Bay for work: only 10% work in town. Bodega Bay’s median household income is $183,000. Since 2013, Bodega Bay has added 95 jobs, to 462 in 2023.
| Bodega Bay | California towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median household income | $183,000 | $95,000 | $80,000 |
| Working residents who work in town | 10% | 6.6% | 8% |
| Average trip to work | 25 minutes | 28 minutes | 25 minutes |
Where working residents work
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Bodega Bay faces a very high natural-hazard risk, led by earthquakes
FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Bodega Bay stands out in California and nationally: a smaller share of its adults feel lonely
27% of adults feel lonely in Bodega Bay. Bodega Bay beats the California average on 16 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 7. 12% of adults report frequent mental distress in Bodega Bay.
| Bodega Bay | California towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Feel lonely (CDC PLACES) | 27% | 36% | 33% |
| Binge drink (CDC PLACES) | 12% | 16% | 16% |
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 12% | 17% | 17% |
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 28% | 35% | 36% |
| What stands out | Bodega Bay | CA |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults facing housing insecurity | 6.4% | 14.9% |
| Fewer adults facing food insecurity | 7.8% | 17.9% |
| More adults who have had cancer | 14.8% | 6.4% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Sonoma Coast State Park | 6.6 mi | 511 |
| 2. Doran Regional Park | 3.4 mi | 181 |
| 3. Estero Americano Coast Preserve | 2.3 mi | 202 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Older than California overall
People 65 and older are 25% of residents (16% statewide); children under 18 are 13% of residents (22% statewide). 43% of Bodega Bay adults 25 and older hold a bachelor’s degree or more.
| Bodega Bay | California towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median age | 52.4 years | 39 years | 40.5 years |
| Bachelor’s degree or more, 25+ | 43% | 29% | 29% |
Ages · share of residents
Education · adults 25 and older
Women and men · all residents
Somewhere between 14% and 69% women
The Census survey reached too few of Bodega Bay’s residents to say more: its margin here is ±27.1 points. Across California, 50.1% of residents are women.
| Bodega Bay | CA | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 0% | 11.4% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 12.5% | 10.5% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 2.2% | 9.1% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 12.3% | 14.8% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 3.3% | 13.9% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 33% | 12.5% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 11.5% | 12.1% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 6.5% | 9.2% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 18.7% | 6.5% | 7% |
| No diploma | 11.7% | 15.3% | 10.4% |
| High school | 23.7% | 20.5% | 26% |
| Some college | 16.5% | 19.3% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 5% | 7.9% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 27.4% | 22.7% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 15.7% | 14.4% | 14.1% |
U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates · in a town of 1,100, single groups can be off by several points
A typical July afternoon in Bodega Bay is cooler than in most of California or the rest of the country
Bodega Bay has warm winters and cool summers. July afternoons reach 65° and January nights drop to 44°.
Typical low → high °F
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Everything we know about Bodega Bay
Colleges nearby
None within 15 miles of Bodega Bay; the nearest are
About 2 of every 100 Bodega Bay residents are enrolled in college, against 8 across California.
1,139 people, and everyone knows the way
In a town this size, neighbors are the best guide. Ask them anything.
About Bodega Bay
Census-designated place in California, United States
Bodega Bay is a village and census-designated place (CDP) in Sonoma County, California, United States. The population was 912 at the 2020 census. The town, located along State Route 1, is on the eastern side of Bodega Harbor, an inlet of Bodega Bay on the Pacific coast.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
- Area
- 13 sq mi
- Elevation
- 56 ft
- ZIP code
- 94923
- Area code
- 707
Questions about Bodega Bay
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Is Bodega Bay, CA expensive?
Yes. Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades D−.